Railway signaling apparatus



(No Model.) I 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

J. K. BYLER.

RAILWAY SIGNALING APPARATUS.- N0. 491,798. Patented Feb. 14, 1893,

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

- J. BYLER,

RAILWAY SIGNALING APPARATUS. No. 491,798. Patented Feb. 14, 1893.

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JAMES K. BYLER, OF MORGANTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 491,798, dated February 14, 1893.

Application filed February 6, 1892. Serial NoAZ I QL (N mOdBL) To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, JAMES K. BYLER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Morgantown, in the county of Berks, State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain Improvements in Railway Signaling Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates more particularly to that class of signals which are intended to prevent accidents at railroad crossings by giving timely and effective warning of approaching trains.

Heretofore safety gates have been designed for thispurpose which were adapted to be operated automatically by movingtrains. It is essential however to the usefulness of such automatic signals that their operation should be perfectly uniform regardless of the speed of the train which operates them, and that the mechanism should be so simple as to be always effective and reliable, and that it should at the same time be so economical as to make their extensive application practicable. 7

My object is to provide an apparatus which will meet all these requirements, and which will also be capable of adaptation to general railway signaling.

The important features are fully described in connection with the accompanying drawings and are specifically pointed out in the claims.

Figure 1 is a sectional elevation indicating the manner of applying my apparatus as an automatic railway safety gate; it is taken mainly on the line X X of Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a plan view. r

The post 0, which carries the semaphore arm or gate D is secured in a vertical position at one side of the track and between two cross-ties B, B, to which latter the rails A are fastened as usual. The semaphore arm D, which is pivoted to the post at a'point c, is provided with a counterbalance weight d which however is not sufficient to prevent the arm D from falling normally to the horizontal position indicated by dotted lines. This arm may be protected by a fixed roof or covering 0' as indicated.

Mounted at its outer end in the lower portion of the post 0 is ahorizontal shaftE which extends transversely under the rail A and is mounted at its opposite end in the wall of a box F secured between the cross-tiesB B". To the outer end of this shaftE is secured an arm K which is connected by a link L to a point 01 of the semaphore arm insuch manner that the rotation of the shaft E so as to move the end of the arm K in the direction y indicated by the arrow: will raise the arm D.

Loosely mounted upon the inner end of the shaft E, within the box F, is a cylindrical,

spring-casing G to the periphery of which the outer end of a spiral spring H is fastened while its inner end is secured to the provided with notches g and g adapted to .65 shaft. A flange g upon this spring-casing is v be engaged by a trigger lever N which is pivoted at a point a, in a horizontal transverse 1 position, and is normally pressed into engagement with the notched flange g by means of 7 pressed it winds up the spiral spring H slightly, thus tending to move the arm K in the direction of thearrow and raising and holding the semaphore arm Din its elevated position. This torsional strain on the shaft '80 h E, and depressed position of the spring plate M, is maintained by the trigger-'leverN which i normally engages one of the notches g 'g;

To complete my apparatus it is only necefs 1 sary to provide means for automatically op erating the trigger-lever N. This maybe accomplished by any well known means in'volv-I" V ing essentially a pivoted arm adapted to be" operated by a moving train, and a wire or rod connection; I prefer however the special form shown in the drawings. pivoted at 0 to a fixed point, is connected at 0' to the operating wire a and supports at its upper end one end of a plate P running parallel with and adjacent to the rail the 0p posite end of which is carried by a pivoted arm 0 similar to O. This plate, which forms The arm O which is a narrow platform inside the rail, and is maintained normally on the same level by means of a spring 0 is pivoted to the arms IOO O and O at points 12 so that when the platform-lever thus formed is depressed by a wheel flange hearing at any point of its length both arms 0, O assume the inclined positions indicated by the dotted center lines, and the trigger-lever N is held in its retracted position; the platform-plate being made of sufficient length to insure its being pressed down by at least one wheel during the whole passage of a train. The spring-plate M which rides upon the cover plate F of the box F, is left in depressed position after the passage of a train and the semaphore arm is held up by the tension thus produced upon the shaft E. \Vhen another train arrives at the platform-lever P, which is located at any proper distance from the signal, the trigger-leverN- is automatically drawn back, thespring H up;

winds, thespring plate M risestothe dotted position, and the semaphore arm D, being re;

lieved from the lifting influence previously, conveyedvto itthroughthe arm K, falls to its normal horizontalposition. When the train, however gets. to the spring plate M and again, depresses it thespring H is. againwound up and held by. the trigger N, and the semaphorearm caused to rise.

A. gong Q naybe advantageouslyused with my apparatus and I prefer toapply. it sub-. stantially as indicated in Fig. 1, in whichthe operating mechanism isinclosed by the bell itself,-the quadrant R, which is carried by the semaphore shaft cand gears with the gong mechanism so asto cause its long continued operation when the arm D falls, being the only other part that showsin such case, The

armD may be placed at any desired heigptt and be madeofany preferred length, depending upon the particular requirementsor pref.- erence in eachcase. The spriugmechanism through whichthe train operates to raise the arm renders the movement of the latter perfectly easy and uniform regardlessbf the speed ofthe train.

I do .nothowever wish to limit myself to either the exact springarrangement shown or to such other details of the construction shown and described as may obviously. be modified without departing from the spirit of my invention, but:-

hat I claim is:

1. In. a, railway signaling apparatus the combination with the pivoted semaphore arm of therotaryshaft E extendingltransversely undera rail of the t-raclc and operatively connected with said arm, a casingloosely mounted on said shaft and connected therewith by a spring and means for automatically rotating the casing to produce a torsional strain upon the shaft, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. In a railway signaling apparatus the combination with the pivoted semaphorearm of the rotaryshaft E extending transversely under a rail of the track and operatively connected with said arm, a casin g loosely mounted casing and means forautomatically operating the trigger mechanisimall substantially. as set forth.

4. In a railway signaling apparatus, the combination ,withthe pivoted semaphore arm,

and a rotary shaftoperativelyconnectedwith said arm, and extending transversely underv a rail of the-track, of atcasingiloosely mounts ed on saidshaft andcennected thGI'GWllJhybM a spring, aired projecting, from saidcasing anda spring plateengagingthe upper end of; said rod and adapted to be depressed bytlre wheels of a passing train, substantiallyasde scribed and for the purposes specified;

5. In. a railway, signaling; apparatus, the combination with the standard 0,, a semas phore arm pivoted thereto; and, having a, weight at one end, a ,rotaryshaft. extending transversely. under arail of, the track, andan arm Kfilld llnkli, connectingsaid shaft and semaphore arm, of, acasing; looselyunountecb on said, shaft andJcOnnected; therewith by a. spring, a rod seeuredat its lowerenditoisaidcasing, and a spring plate engagingthe upper end of said rod and adapted to be do: pressed by the wheels of apassingtrain, substantially asldescribed and for thepurposes specified.

6. In a railway signaling apparatus,.the; combination with the standard 0, a sema phore arm pivoted thereto and having; a weight at one end, arotary shaft extending transversely under a rail of the track, and an arm K and link L connecting saidishaftand; semaphore-arm, of acasing loosely mounted on saidshaftland connected therewith bya spring, said casing having notches, on one;

side, a rod secured at its lower end to said casing near the side thereof, remote from said notches a spring plate engagingthe,upper rzo 'end of said rod and adapted to be depressed by thewheels of a passing train and thereby wind said spring in the casing, a pivoted trig ger lever engaging said notchesin the casing andserving to lock. said casing, and means. operated by a passing train for disengaging said trigger. lever, from the casing,;,as de scribed.

7. In a railway signaling apparatus, the combination with the rotary shaft; and a. semaphore arm connected with said shaft and provided with a weight adapted partly to balance it, of the spring secured at one end to said shaft and at the other end to a casing surrounding the same, a retracting plate connected to said casing and arranged adjacent to the track, and a trigger mechanism for holding said plate in depressed position, substantially as and for the purposes specified.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses;

JAMES K. BYLER. Witnesses:

ADAM L. OTTERBEIN, O. F. EVANS. 

